How Important is Public Opinion?

    When looking at political elections, there are a number of reasons why one candidate claims victory over another.  One of the main reasons for victory is a positive public opinion.  Public opinion is conducted by means of polls, surveys and questionaires.  All of these polling techniques are used to gage the American citizens approval ratings of candidates running for office, and politicians already occupying a seat in office.  In order to win a campaign, it is in a candidates best interests to have high approval ratings in public opinion polls, as afterall, it is the public who controls a candidates employment.
    I believe that although some candidates seem to win elections even with low approval ratings, it is definitely important to gain support through public opinion when running for an election.  History and statistics show that candidates who make an effort to gain approval through public opinion, are usually more successful politicians.  Although there are exceptions (George W. Bush; who had one of the lowest approval ratings in history, while still managing to get elected into a second term), I believe that approval ratings and public opinion polls are more crucial for politicians on a state and local level.  For instance, many Presidents have had low approval ratings, but still managed to win elections, as citizens are forced to vote for the lesser of two evils thanks to our two-party system.  But, on a state and local level, elections are much more frequent beckoning constant support from a candidates constituents if a candidate wishes to occupy a seat in the House/Senate.
    In conclusion, I believe that in order to be a successful, life-long politician, it is vital to gain support through public opinion.  Although government officials on a federal level can ignore public opinion to an extent, the bottom line of winning an election deals with whether or not the public votes for you.